Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU
Mars is known for having seasonal dust storms that occasionally spread to cover the entire planet. These storms are the biggest threat for some of NASA's explorers since the dust can clog up their instruments and prevent sunlight from reaching their solar panels.
Monitoring dust storms is crucial for operations. They can form during all Martian seasons, and some of them can expand in a few days. In 2018, one such storm engulfed the planet and brought an end to NASA's Opportunity rover. Luckily, scientists receive data from the rovers and landers on Mars through a network of orbiters, which watch from above what happens on the Red Planet. Among them are the Odyssey, MAVEN, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
Since winter has arrived on the Red Planet, it's not only colder, but the days are also shorter, and the dust levels are higher. These conditions make it harder and harder for solar-powered spacecraft to operate at full capacity. The NASA InSight Mars lander's mission will soon come to an end due to the severe dust accumulation on the panels.
Although Ingenuity isn't in such a bad shape as InSight, the team still needs to take action to keep it healthy as long as possible. Since May, the little rotorcraft has been facing dust-related issues. The sunlight that hit its solar panels diminished as the Martian winter approached. So the helicopter has received less and less power from its six lithium-ion batteries.
The team behind Ingenuity did take some measures to ensure that the helicopter's batteries could get enough energy. Ingenuity has lowered the temperature at which its heaters turn on, which is essential for keeping its components operational at night. But that's not enough to withstand the winter season.
So the helicopter will take a break until August to allow its batteries to charge back up. According to the agency, dust levels are expected to decrease in the few weeks, allowing Ingenuity to spin its blades once again in the thin Martian atmosphere.
Since winter has arrived on the Red Planet, it's not only colder, but the days are also shorter, and the dust levels are higher. These conditions make it harder and harder for solar-powered spacecraft to operate at full capacity. The NASA InSight Mars lander's mission will soon come to an end due to the severe dust accumulation on the panels.
Although Ingenuity isn't in such a bad shape as InSight, the team still needs to take action to keep it healthy as long as possible. Since May, the little rotorcraft has been facing dust-related issues. The sunlight that hit its solar panels diminished as the Martian winter approached. So the helicopter has received less and less power from its six lithium-ion batteries.
The team behind Ingenuity did take some measures to ensure that the helicopter's batteries could get enough energy. Ingenuity has lowered the temperature at which its heaters turn on, which is essential for keeping its components operational at night. But that's not enough to withstand the winter season.
So the helicopter will take a break until August to allow its batteries to charge back up. According to the agency, dust levels are expected to decrease in the few weeks, allowing Ingenuity to spin its blades once again in the thin Martian atmosphere.
The #MarsHelicopter is taking a break for the next few weeks. It’s winter and dust season on Mars, which means less sunlight to recharge Ingenuity’s batteries. But don’t worry, the team expects the rotorcraft to fly again in August. https://t.co/SzmZg7ln7l pic.twitter.com/VJIPsAb0aE
— NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) July 14, 2022
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